Banks Peninsula TC 26 January 2020 – R 6 – Chair, Mr R McKenzie
ID: JCA18232
Meet Title:
Banks Peninsula TC - 26 January 2020
Meet Chair:
RMcKenzie
Meet Committee Member 1:
DAnderson
Race Date:
2020/01/26
Race Number:
R6
Decision:
The charge is found proved.
Penalty:
Miss Cameron’s Junior Driver’s licence is suspended from after the close of racing on 26 January 2020 up to and including 15 February 2020 – 5 days. The meetings intended to be encompassed by the period of suspension are NZ Metropolitan TC on 31 January, Geraldine TC on 1 February, Amberley TC on 6 February, Hororata TC on 9 February and Oamaru HRC on 15 February. The premier meeting of NZ Metropolitan TC on 14 February was not taken into account.
Facts:
Following the running of Race 6, Selwyn District Council Junior Drivers Mobile Pace, an information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Ms C M Tibbs, against Licensed Junior Driver, Miss A J Cameron, alleging that Miss Cameron, as the driver of BORN TO RUN in the race, “failed to take her runner clear of the field when in a break resulting in numerous runners being checked”.
Miss Cameron had signed the Statement by the Respondent on the information form indicating that she denied the charge. She confirmed this at the hearing, at which she was present. As a Junior Driver, Miss Cameron was assisted at the hearing by Licensed Open Driver, Mr M C Purvis.
Rule 870 provides as follows:
(1) When any horse breaks from its gait in any race its driver shall immediately take all reasonable steps to return it to its proper gait and where clearance exists immediately take such horse clear of the field.
(2) The following shall be a breach of sub-rule (1) hereof:-
(a) Failure to take the horse clear of the field.
Submissions for Decision:
Ms Tibbs had Stipendiary Steward, Mr S P Renault, show video replays of the relevant part of the race, approximately 250 metres after the start of the 2000 metres mobile start race. BORN TO RUN, driven by Miss Cameron, was in the lead approaching the crossing before the turn out of the straight. Over the crossing, the horse broke and was not taken clear of the field, Ms Tibbs submitted, causing interference to following runners.
When the horse broke, it was several lengths clear of the nearest of the following runners, Ms Tibbs said. Miss Cameron had tried to restrain, but she had not attempted to steer the horse outwards and clear of following runners. It was apparent from the position of her hands that Miss Cameron had made no effort to steer the horse outwards, Ms Tibbs submitted. There was plenty of room to her outside for Miss Cameron to take the horse wide and clear of following runners, she said.
Mr Renault demonstrated that Miss Cameron was some 4 lengths clear of the field, and BORN TO RUN had jumped the crossing and gone into a break. Stewards would have expected Miss Cameron to take the horse clear of the field by immediately going to the outside of the track. Miss Cameron could be seen to look around but had taken no steps to do that. Instead of her right hand pulling down to steer the horse to the outside of the track, she can be seen pulling on the left rein, Mr Renault submitted. As a consequence, the whole field was hampered or checked and, shortly after, another driver was dislodged from the sulky. She had had ample time to take the horse wide on the track, as she was well clear of any following runner, Mr Renault submitted.
Miss Cameron said that she had tried to steer the horse wide but she had looked and seen other runners being steered wide so she had opted to instead maintain a straight line.
Mr Purvis said that the horse had clearly jumped the crossing and was in an “erratic gallop”. Miss Cameron would first have to balance her horse. As she looked around, the trailing runner has galloped and come out of the trail. The following drivers had seen what was happening and had started to steer up the track. Miss Cameron had made an attempt to restrain and get out of the way, but risked causing more interference by shifting wide rather than maintaining a straight course, Mr Purvis said. She had done her best to maintain a straight course, Mr Purvis submitted. The Committee observed that Miss Cameron had approached the crossing too fast which had not helped. Mr Purvis agreed.
Summing up, Mr Renault said that Miss Cameron had taken action, but she should have gone to the outside and clear of the field. The rule requires a galloping horse to be taken to the outside of the track and clear of the field. The other drivers would have expected her to do this, he said. Those other drivers did not know what she was doing and had tried to take evasive action.
Reasons for Decision:
Miss Cameron’s horse, BORN TO RUN, broke when it got to the crossing at considerable speed some 250 metres after the start of the race. Miss Cameron said that she initially looked to take the horse to the outside of the track, as she ought to have done. At that point, she was several lengths clear of the nearest trailing runner and, the Committee believes, she had ample opportunity to take her runner out and clear of the field. In deciding to maintain a straight course, most of the following runners suffered some degree of interference.
The rule requires a driver to immediately take “all reasonable steps” where clearance exists to take the horse clear of the field. The Committee finds that, in this instance, Miss Cameron has failed to make a sufficient effort or taken “all reasonable steps” to take her horse clear of the field, when there existed a clear opportunity for her to do so. Her failure to do so resulted in significant interference to trailing runners, which may have been a contributing factor in the ultimate abandonment of the race.
We find the charge proved.
Submissions for Penalty:
Ms Tibbs referred to the Penalty Guide starting point for a breach of the rule of an 8-drives suspension or a $400 fine. Stewards felt that this breach is at the higher end, requiring an uplift to that starting point. A 10-12 drives suspension would be appropriate having regard to the seriousness of the consequences, Ms Tibbs submitted. Miss Cameron has, on average, 1 to 2 drives per meeting she said. Miss Cameron accepted this as fair assessment of the frequency with which she drives.
Miss Cameron is in her first season as a Junior Driver. She has driven 41 times and has no previous breach of the rule, Ms Tibbs said.
Mr Purvis submitted that a 12-drives suspension would be high, having regard to Miss Cameron’s lack of experience and, in particular, how to drive over a crossing on a grass track. Therefore, the Committee should consider a mid-range starting point, he submitted.
Miss Cameron said that she wished any period of suspension to commence immediately .
Reasons for Penalty:
In considering penalty, the Committee has had regard to the starting point under the Penalty Guide of an 8-drives suspension. We do not consider that a fine is an appropriate penalty for this particular breach.
We agree with Ms Tibbs’ submission that the breach is at the higher end of the scale, given the consequences, which warrants an uplift to that starting point. That uplift, we fix at two drives. However, we have given considerable weight, by way of a mitigating factor, to the fact that Miss Cameron is a first-season Junior Driver with very limited experience. Her previous clear record is unsurprising, but her inexperience warrants a discount from the adjusted starting point of ten drives, and we fix that discount at two drives.
The Committee then needed to decide the number of meetings at which Miss Cameron would be likely to have eight drives. In the event, we have calculated this on the basis of 1.5 drives per meeting, or five meetings. Any longer period of suspension would not be helpful in her gaining experience and advancing her promising career. We note that she has had 5 wins from 41 drives.
JCA Decision Fields (raw)
Dmitry: This section contains all JCA fields migrated from the raw data.
Data from these fields should be mapped appropriately to display amongst the standard fields above; please make note of any values below that are missing in the above standard fields but should be there.
hearingid: ff05483410f4a515820d578fea0e686c
informantnumber: A11242
horsename:
hearing_racingtype:
startdate: no date provided
newcharge: Failing to Take Horse Clear of Field
plea: denied
penaltyrequired: 1
decisiondate: 31/01/2020
hearing_title: Banks Peninsula TC 26 January 2020 - R 6 - Chair, Mr R McKenzie
charge:
facts:
Following the running of Race 6, Selwyn District Council Junior Drivers Mobile Pace, an information was filed by Stipendiary Steward, Ms C M Tibbs, against Licensed Junior Driver, Miss A J Cameron, alleging that Miss Cameron, as the driver of BORN TO RUN in the race, “failed to take her runner clear of the field when in a break resulting in numerous runners being checked”.
Miss Cameron had signed the Statement by the Respondent on the information form indicating that she denied the charge. She confirmed this at the hearing, at which she was present. As a Junior Driver, Miss Cameron was assisted at the hearing by Licensed Open Driver, Mr M C Purvis.
Rule 870 provides as follows:
(1) When any horse breaks from its gait in any race its driver shall immediately take all reasonable steps to return it to its proper gait and where clearance exists immediately take such horse clear of the field.
(2) The following shall be a breach of sub-rule (1) hereof:-
(a) Failure to take the horse clear of the field.
appealdecision:
isappeal:
submissionsfordecision:
Ms Tibbs had Stipendiary Steward, Mr S P Renault, show video replays of the relevant part of the race, approximately 250 metres after the start of the 2000 metres mobile start race. BORN TO RUN, driven by Miss Cameron, was in the lead approaching the crossing before the turn out of the straight. Over the crossing, the horse broke and was not taken clear of the field, Ms Tibbs submitted, causing interference to following runners.
When the horse broke, it was several lengths clear of the nearest of the following runners, Ms Tibbs said. Miss Cameron had tried to restrain, but she had not attempted to steer the horse outwards and clear of following runners. It was apparent from the position of her hands that Miss Cameron had made no effort to steer the horse outwards, Ms Tibbs submitted. There was plenty of room to her outside for Miss Cameron to take the horse wide and clear of following runners, she said.
Mr Renault demonstrated that Miss Cameron was some 4 lengths clear of the field, and BORN TO RUN had jumped the crossing and gone into a break. Stewards would have expected Miss Cameron to take the horse clear of the field by immediately going to the outside of the track. Miss Cameron could be seen to look around but had taken no steps to do that. Instead of her right hand pulling down to steer the horse to the outside of the track, she can be seen pulling on the left rein, Mr Renault submitted. As a consequence, the whole field was hampered or checked and, shortly after, another driver was dislodged from the sulky. She had had ample time to take the horse wide on the track, as she was well clear of any following runner, Mr Renault submitted.
Miss Cameron said that she had tried to steer the horse wide but she had looked and seen other runners being steered wide so she had opted to instead maintain a straight line.
Mr Purvis said that the horse had clearly jumped the crossing and was in an “erratic gallop”. Miss Cameron would first have to balance her horse. As she looked around, the trailing runner has galloped and come out of the trail. The following drivers had seen what was happening and had started to steer up the track. Miss Cameron had made an attempt to restrain and get out of the way, but risked causing more interference by shifting wide rather than maintaining a straight course, Mr Purvis said. She had done her best to maintain a straight course, Mr Purvis submitted. The Committee observed that Miss Cameron had approached the crossing too fast which had not helped. Mr Purvis agreed.
Summing up, Mr Renault said that Miss Cameron had taken action, but she should have gone to the outside and clear of the field. The rule requires a galloping horse to be taken to the outside of the track and clear of the field. The other drivers would have expected her to do this, he said. Those other drivers did not know what she was doing and had tried to take evasive action.
reasonsfordecision:
Miss Cameron’s horse, BORN TO RUN, broke when it got to the crossing at considerable speed some 250 metres after the start of the race. Miss Cameron said that she initially looked to take the horse to the outside of the track, as she ought to have done. At that point, she was several lengths clear of the nearest trailing runner and, the Committee believes, she had ample opportunity to take her runner out and clear of the field. In deciding to maintain a straight course, most of the following runners suffered some degree of interference.
The rule requires a driver to immediately take “all reasonable steps” where clearance exists to take the horse clear of the field. The Committee finds that, in this instance, Miss Cameron has failed to make a sufficient effort or taken “all reasonable steps” to take her horse clear of the field, when there existed a clear opportunity for her to do so. Her failure to do so resulted in significant interference to trailing runners, which may have been a contributing factor in the ultimate abandonment of the race.
We find the charge proved.
Decision:
The charge is found proved.
sumissionsforpenalty:
Ms Tibbs referred to the Penalty Guide starting point for a breach of the rule of an 8-drives suspension or a $400 fine. Stewards felt that this breach is at the higher end, requiring an uplift to that starting point. A 10-12 drives suspension would be appropriate having regard to the seriousness of the consequences, Ms Tibbs submitted. Miss Cameron has, on average, 1 to 2 drives per meeting she said. Miss Cameron accepted this as fair assessment of the frequency with which she drives.
Miss Cameron is in her first season as a Junior Driver. She has driven 41 times and has no previous breach of the rule, Ms Tibbs said.
Mr Purvis submitted that a 12-drives suspension would be high, having regard to Miss Cameron’s lack of experience and, in particular, how to drive over a crossing on a grass track. Therefore, the Committee should consider a mid-range starting point, he submitted.
Miss Cameron said that she wished any period of suspension to commence immediately .
reasonsforpenalty:
In considering penalty, the Committee has had regard to the starting point under the Penalty Guide of an 8-drives suspension. We do not consider that a fine is an appropriate penalty for this particular breach.
We agree with Ms Tibbs’ submission that the breach is at the higher end of the scale, given the consequences, which warrants an uplift to that starting point. That uplift, we fix at two drives. However, we have given considerable weight, by way of a mitigating factor, to the fact that Miss Cameron is a first-season Junior Driver with very limited experience. Her previous clear record is unsurprising, but her inexperience warrants a discount from the adjusted starting point of ten drives, and we fix that discount at two drives.
The Committee then needed to decide the number of meetings at which Miss Cameron would be likely to have eight drives. In the event, we have calculated this on the basis of 1.5 drives per meeting, or five meetings. Any longer period of suspension would not be helpful in her gaining experience and advancing her promising career. We note that she has had 5 wins from 41 drives.
penalty:
Miss Cameron’s Junior Driver’s licence is suspended from after the close of racing on 26 January 2020 up to and including 15 February 2020 – 5 days. The meetings intended to be encompassed by the period of suspension are NZ Metropolitan TC on 31 January, Geraldine TC on 1 February, Amberley TC on 6 February, Hororata TC on 9 February and Oamaru HRC on 15 February. The premier meeting of NZ Metropolitan TC on 14 February was not taken into account.
hearing_type: Hearing
Rules: 870(1)&(2)
Informant: C M Tibbs, Stipendiary Steward
JockeysandTrainer: A J Cameron, Licensed Junior Driver
Otherperson: M C Purvis, Licensed Open Driver, Mr S P Renault - Stipendiary Steward
PersonPresent:
Respondent:
StipendSteward:
raceid: be2487f0fbf817542e000be548ec1ecf
race_expapproval:
racecancelled: 0
race_noreport: 0
race_emailed1: 0
race_emailed2: 0
race_title: R6
submittochair:
race_expappcomment:
race_km:
race_otherexp:
race_chair:
race_pm1:
race_pm2:
meetid: c70c3e51f616fc9ab71ba659f34e193c
meet_expapproval:
meet_noreport: 0
waitingforpublication: 0
meet_emailed1: 0
meet_emailed2: 0
meetdate: 26/01/2020
meet_title: Banks Peninsula TC - 26 January 2020
meet_expappcomment:
meet_km:
meet_otherexp:
tracklocation: banks-peninsula-tc
meet_racingtype: harness-racing
meet_chair: RMcKenzie
meet_pm1: DAnderson
meet_pm2: none
name: Banks Peninsula TC